Bernstein moved to Southern Nevada in 1976, where he took a job in Las Vegas as a public defender. He started his own private practice, Edward M. Bernstein & Associates, where he found most of his success. His law firm, started when Las Vegas was still a small gaming boomtown, and later represented many high-profile cases in Nevada, which brought about much of his regional fame. Bernstein used this fame to champion many causes including MADD (where he introduced the first Red-Ribbon Campaign which garnered national attention later) and the Anti-Defamation League. He has represented clients in major cases in Las Vegas as the MGM and Hilton Fires, the Pepcon explosion as well as the hepatitis outbreak at the Endoscopy clinic. In the hepatitis case Bernstein's firm obtained one of the highest verdicts in Nevada history of $104,000,000. He has also played an instrumental role in advocating funds and awareness for Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, a charity that has a personal interest for him since his daughter was diagnosed with the disease. He has served as a Judge pro tem in Las Vegas and North Las Vegas as well as a State hearing officer for the Dept.of Administration. He has also served on various Nevada Supreme Court committees, U.S. District Court and Nevada State Bar Committees. He was also a member of the Nevada Psychology Board.